Back in the City

For the past almost 4 years, we have lived in a rural community. Actually, we live in a rural "suburb" (I think that's an oxymoron) of a small town. We live in an area known as "Cheraw." But we don't actually live in Cheraw--which is about 1/2 mile square--We live about a mile and a half from the center of Cheraw. I understand that at one time Cheraw had a store, a bank, a gas station, a golf course, etc. Now it just has a cafe and post office and school. So if you stop to think about we live outside, in a rural area, of a rural "suburb" of a small town. The small town of La Junta, which is about 3 miles square, is about 10 miles south of us. And we have gotten accustomed to our 4.5 acres of open space.
But we also miss the advantages of living in the city. Our small town of La Junta has some features of city life--a chain grocery store, several chain "fast-food" restaurants, a Wal-Mart, a hospital, a community college, etc. But it doesn't have a mall with major dept. stores, a major big-box hardware store (like Home Depot), nice big name restaurants, etc. The closest city with some of those features is over an hour away.
So when we come to So Cal it is like "Candyland" to us. All the major stores and restaurants within a 5 minute drive of us! So much to choose from and so little time! But with the convenience also comes the crowdedness of the city. We want to have all the stuff and still enjoy our space. I guess you can't have it both ways.
We are wondering where God will move us next? Will it be to a rural area of a small town? a small city? the middle of the real suburbs? Wherever it is, we know that God will give us the grace to handle wherever He puts us. We are still waiting 'patiently.' (Okay, sometimes not so patiently.) And we look forward to what God has in store for us in 2008!

Hangin' Out in California

We are enjoying our time with family in California. We spent several days with Josh in Yuma, AZ, including Christmas day. And then we talked him into driving to CA with us. We are staying with my sister and her husband, Jean and John, and spending time with my folks too.
We were looking forward to warmer weather here. It has been warmer than Colorado, that's for sure! But not as warm as I thought it might be--60's in day and 40's at night. My dad says it will warm up to 70 next Monday :) We are having over 20 people here for New Year's Eve. It will be great to be together with the extended family.

Family time is very important. No one ever says on their death bed, "Oh, I wish I would have spent more time at the office" or "I wish I would have worked longer hours." But many have said, "I wish I would have spent more time with the family!"
Enjoy your family while you can. What fun things did you do with your family at Christmas?

Merry Christmas!

We are in Yuma, AZ, visiting Josh. This morning we helped him cook breakfast for his staff--pancakes, eggs, ham, cinnamon rolls, and more! Everyone gave him a hard time about making his parents work on their vacation (actually we volunteered to help!).

An interesting turn of events before we left CO--I had talked to the charter school in CA where I thought I might be able to work and the HR manager told me that there were other applicants who were in the area to interview and I was not--so basically I don't think they will do a phone interview like I thought they would. It doesn't look like I will be going to CA--good news for Karen.
And then on Friday morning I called the high school in Lamar (about 50 miles east) that I sent an app to. The principal wanted to meet with me so I drove out and had an interview. It turns out that he had offered the job to someone from Nebraska the day before, but he received a call from that guy on Friday morning declining the job--So God had me call at just the right time. The principal asked if I would be interested in doing a long-term sub, and I said yes. (That would be better pay than regular subbing, plus not a contact so I could leave if I needed.) I don't know if I will be hired but I have a good chance at it.

And then we came to Yuma and went to a church on Sunday that Josh had told me was without a pastor. What an insight into established churches in small towns--there are small older churches that are progressive! (Powerpoint, updated sound system, etc.) And we learned that their search committee is just getting organized. (I had sent them my resume a couple of weeks ago.) Josh talked to someone at work today who knows a head leader at the church and said he would put in a good word for me. Maybe God is working things here for us?? Anyway, we are praying that we could be near family. Thanks for your prayers for us.
Have a Merry Christmas!

No News

They say 'no news is good news.' Someone in fact said this to us the other day when we said that we hadn't gotten any news about any jobs or ministry opportunities. But at times like this, hearing anything would be welcome. (At least that is what we think right now, but of course we have not had to receive any bad news to think about.) Anyway, it is hard to continue to wait--Karen has been praying that we would have someplace to go by December 20--so we need to pray hard the next few days.

Forgive me for being so negligent at my blog, but like I said, I've had no news to share.

I still think that there is a possibility of me going to California next month--but I haven't had the phone interview that they said they might be able to set up. I will contact them again this week to see if it is still a possibility.
Meanwhile, I have been keeping pretty busy subbing--all this week I will be at Karen's school. Tomorrow (Monday) I am taking Karen's class for her as she has been sick all weekend. Then the other days for 2 other teachers at her school.
On Saturday we head for Yuma, AZ, to spend Christmas with Josh--and then on to Hemet, CA, to stay with Jean (my sister) and John and Mom and Dad. It will be good to get out of this cold weather for a while! We have snow on the ground now and more snow expected next weekend.

Have a great week!

#1

I was just reminded by something that I read--it is something that I have heard and said for many years but it is good to be reminded of it:

The number one thing in life is to keep the number one thing, number one!

Of course, the number one thing in life is Jesus Christ. Our whole life's purpose is to keep Him first in our life. There are so many other things that can get our focus off of Him--jobs, schooling, illness, everyday stress, relationships, good things, bad things, etc.

As I am putting my focus on Christ, I am also trying to wait patiently for His Will. No news yet regarding any ministry or teaching job. Thanks for your continued prayers.

Being Missional

I have been doing a lot of thinking about what I would want a church to be like lately, especially since I am sometimes asked to fill out questionaires about my philosophy of ministry. A term that I have come to use as part of my ministry philosophy is "missional." I have read several articles this year on that subject as well as part of a book called "Shaped by God's Heart--the Passion and Practices of Missional churches." So I would want my next church to have the vision of being missional.
What does that mean?
Here is a little excert from an article that summaries the philosophy:
Missional churches understand that things no longer work as they once did. Indeed, what worked even as recently as last Sunday may not work this Sunday. Through the process of "branding" , we discover that what the church thinks it is doing does not necessarily reflect what is actually happening.
Missional churches need to be transformational. This begins with God and you. If your life is not being transformed by the power of God, missional is just a word - nothing more. Now, more than ever before, it is imperative to take a creative, relevant approach in preaching the whole gospel. In other words, sin, repentance, faith, confession and living a life of holiness is crucial for today. The content of the gospel does not change, but the packaging changes continually. It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. (Rom. 1:16)
Read the rest of the article at http://exp.etelos.com/sys/nl/ai.esp?cid=a1e28c563f453874aabd1b3f37a712fe&iid=4144&taf=0&show=13046

On another note, the Lord closed the door on a church that I was in contact with this week. We are still praying that God would lead us to a church where I can work with them to become the type of church mentioned above. Meanwhile Karen has enjoyed me being at her school again today.

Holiday Spending

I have read a couple of times lately that retailers say spending is down this year compared to previous years. Or I should say that the increase in spending this year is less of an increase than in previous years. Each year, Americans spend more than the year before, but this year the percentage of increase declined. I don't remember the exact percentages, but I do remember that the average American consumer will spend about $816.00 on holiday shopping this year. Well, to balance out that average from what we are planning to spend, some of you will be doing a LOT of shopping!!

How about you--are you above or below that average?

Of course, I like what one little child said at this time of year, "If it's Jesus' birthday, why do we get all the presents?"

Let's remember to keep the focus on CHRIST at Christmas!

Feeling Better

The last two days I have worked subbing even though I was feeling pretty "rough" yesterday. Sometimes when I sub, the plans are pretty basic--give worksheet and have students work quietly. However, yesterday when I decided to go ahead and work, I didn't realize how difficult a time I was going to have talking that day. And wouldn't you know it, the plans had me do a chapter review for the first and third periods--I had to talk all hour--barely! But I survived. Today, I was at Karen's district in the high school which is almost connected to her elementary wing. Just a little reading out loud for one period, but my voice is 100% better today.

I still haven't gotten an interview call for the teaching position in CA, but I did find that there is an open teaching position in Lamar about an hour from here. That would be so much better to be able to stay here with Karen! I will check it out tomorrow if I don't get called to sub.

On the couch

I have not been feeling well today with a bad cold and sore throat. I haven't even felt like searching for church jobs on the computer. Hopefully I will feel better tomorrow.
I do have another questionaire to fill out for a church that responded back--this one up by Denver. So now that I have been contacted back by a church, I am wondering about do I keep pursueing a church position and stay here, or do I go to California and teach? But, of course, I don't have to make any decisions yet because no jobs have been offered. Still, I wonder what will be the best plans to be making. Please pray about this particular church possibility and that the Lord will give me wisdom as I respond and as I make plans for next month.

Am I a "weird" pastor?

I thought that this was an interesting posting for an open pastor position--but I don't know if I would fit in at this church:
We have planted a Spirit Filled Church in beautiful Southern Oregon. We have anywhere from 20- 40 coming and just began a children's ministry (about 10) Looking for someone who is 'called and gifted as a Pastor', not wierd, has the Holy Ghost Fire, but not strange fire, and willing to be paid as it comes in.
You see, I feel 'called and gifted as a Pastor' but notice how they qualify that -- "not weird". How many weird pastors have you met in your lifetime? (I think I could identify one or two that I have met.) And how many weird pastors would admit to being weird and automatically eliminate themselves?
And then there is the matter of having the Holy Ghost fire--I am sealed and baptized and filled with the Spirit, but do I have the "fire"? And if I have the fire, hopefully it is not "strange fire". (Can anyone tell this Baptist pastor what they mean by "strange fire"?)

Anyway I thought some of you might find that ad enjoyable!
I am still sending out resumes, however I probably won't send one to that church. I am still considering taking a teaching position in California until a church might open up. I did receive a call yesterday from a charter school that needs an independent study teacher--they are planning on setting up a phone interview with me soon. Please pray for direction about this possibility--it would mean being in California while Karen is here in Colorado.

Thankful for Puppy Love!

Happy Thanksgiving Forever!

That's right--Forever! So often we focus on the one day that we have set aside to give thanks, but we are commanded in scripture to always give thanks. Of course, you know that--but it's good to be reminded of it. And I was also reminded this week that we are to thank God, not for the good things we have but because He is good. We can thank God for our good health, but what if we don't have good health--we are to thank God for He is good. We thank God for our homes and families, but what if we lose our homes and family--we are to thank God for He is good. We can thank God for the freedom that we have in America, but what if we lose that freedom--Thank God for He is Good! His mercy endures forever! I thank God for my home and my family and my country, but most of all I thank God for His mercy that He showed to me by sending His Son to give me life forever with Him! Thank the Lord, for He is good! His mercy endures forever!
As far as God answering our prayers about a new ministry, we are still waiting. Thanks for your continued prayers.

Church Leadership

I read a good article from Leadership written by Bill Hybels about leadership style for church ministry. Basically he says that you can't run a church like a business. Here is one excerpt from his article:

1. Every life requires a custom mold.
You don't stop the line in a factory every time a product comes down it. In church work, we're developing individual, custom-made lives. We stop the line for every life.
I've read books about Napoleon, de Gaulle, Eisenhower, MacArthur, Patton. They were all the great military leaders. I don't want to minimize their capabilities or the courage it takes to charge a hill in time of battle, but I've wondered, What would it be like for some of those leaders to have to work it out with deacons before they charged up a hill? How well would they do if they had to subject their plans to a vote involving the very people they're going to lead up the hill? How would the whole military system work if you took away the leadership leverage of the court-martial?
Anyone could build a church with that kind of leverage! I can hear the generals now: "Teach a Sunday school class or go to the brig." "You call that an offering? Give me fifty push-ups right now." That's leverage!

Check out the rest of the article http://lists.christianitytoday.com/t/9310751/1790648/140804/0/

What next?

When I first started this blog, my plan was to keep you posted about my situation and plans for the future. Karen and I really thought that things would be moving along a lot quicker than they are. The first churches that I contacted responded fairly quickly, although those did not turn out to be where God wanted us. Now, we are in a situation of not being in contact with any churches and still wondering what God's plan is for us.
Karen and I have been doing a lot of talking and praying about what our next step is, since we are minus an income. I am seriously thinking of applying for a teaching position in California to help with paying the bills. There are no teaching positions open for me at this time in Colorado, but there are a couple of possibilities in So Cal.
Please continue to pray--my first desire is to pastor a church. But until that happens, I may need to teach. Of course, this would mean me being in CA while Karen finishes out the school year in Colorado, along with trying to get the house sold, too.
Again, we really appreciate all your prayers for us.

Small Churches

I am still sending out resumes to churches that I find have openings. Most of the churches I contact are in the "small church" category--that is they have an attendance of less than 100. I have also contacted churches in the mid-size range (100-300), but I find that those churches are generally looking for someone with more years of experience or with experience at such a size church. Anyway, since that is my focus I am always interested in articles dealing with small churches. I came across such an article in my files today that I thought I would share some excerpts with you. I know some of you attend a small church or feel that a small church has some advantages over large churches.
The title of this article caught my eye: Small Churches Struggle to Grow Because Of The People They Attract -
"The United States is dominated by small churches, with the average church attracting less than 90 adults on a typical weekend. The greatest attention flows to large churches, especially the 2% of churches that attract more than 1000 adults in a typical weekend. A new study by the Barna Research Group shows that there are both demographic and theolographic reasons why small churches stay small and large churches grow larger. While some church growth can be attributed to geographic location and population growth, the Barna study indicates that there are fundamental dynamics at work that keep small congregations from growing numerically as well as several basic factors that contribute to the numerical expansion of mid-sized and large churches.
Overall, the research found that the typical Protestant church has 89 adults in attendance during an average weekend. In total, 60% of Protestant churches have 100 or fewer adults on a typical weekend, while slightly less than 2% have 1000 or more adults. Examining the figures in terms of where adults attend, however, the statistics show that about four out of ten church-going adults (41%) go to churches with 100 or fewer adults while about one out of eight church-going adults (12%) can be found in churches of 1000 or more adults.
Demographic Drawbacks for Small Churches
The Barna survey discovered that small churches (defined as average weekend attendance of 100 or fewer adults) are more likely than either mid-sized (301-999 adults) or large churches (1000 or more adults) to draw people who are not college graduates and are more likely to appeal to people with lower household incomes. George Barna suggested that a “downscale” demographic profile often correlates with less aggressive growth patterns in organizations and a limited number of effective leaders.
Surprisingly, the research showed that adults under 35 years of age are more likely than are older adults to attend small churches. Barna cited two dominant reasons for this pattern. The first is the relative absence of children among younger adults. This impacts one’s choice of a church because providing children with a quality ministry experience is one of the main reasons why many Americans attend a church, and larger churches typically offer more programs and opportunities for children. The second reason why younger adults are more likely to attend a small church relates to the Baby Bust generation’s disinterest in participating in Boomer-led organizations and in large-scale enterprises. Busters are more interested in being personally known and connected, which many believe is more difficult to accomplish in larger churches.
Theolographic Limitations in Small Churches
The study also found that small churches have some theolographic limitations – that is, their spiritual beliefs and practices reflect challenges that are less prevalent in larger congregations.
The data revealed that small churches have a lower proportion of attenders who are “spiritually active,” which was defined as individuals who attend a church service, read the Bible, and pray to God during a typical week. This paralleled a finding that showed small church attenders are less likely to claim that their religious faith is “very important” in their life.In addition, the research showed that adults affiliated with small congregations are less likely to be born again, less likely to believe in salvation by grace alone (i.e., not by good deeds), and less likely to have an orthodox view of God (i.e., holy, creator, ruler of the universe, alive today). The report indicated that such views undermine a solid theological foundation for congregational growth and may suggest that other spiritual perspectives that conflict with the Bible are common in smaller churches." (Note: I think the reason those in small churches are "less likely to be born-again" is because so many liberal churches are dying and are very small!)
But the article goes on to say that there is Hope for Small Churches.
In spite of the obstacles revealed in the research, small churches have tremendous potential. “These insights simply identify some of the critical challenges that the average small church has to address. Small churches play an important and valuable role in the religious landscape of America. They reach millions of young adults who have no interest in a larger church setting. They have tremendous potential for building strong community, as well as spiritual foundations. And small churches often grow into larger churches once they develop significant internal leadership and creatively overcome their resource limitations.”
Barna also questioned the value of growth for its own sake. (I especially like this part:) “Jesus did not die on the cross to fill up church auditoriums,” he cautioned. “He died so that people might know God personally and be transformed in all dimensions of their life through their ongoing relationship with Him. Such a personal reformation can happen in a church of any size. After all, the goal of every church should not be numerical growth but spiritual health and vitality.”

What size church do you like best, and why?

Church Search

By church search I mean searching for a church to attend on Sundays. We really don't feel comfortable attending churches in La Junta. The Mennonite church here in Cheraw was just too different and old-fashioned for us. And the First Baptist of Las Animas that we attended two weeks ago just didn't seem to be right for us, although we are friends with the pastor there.
So we ended up going to a church in Ordway (the town where Karen teaches) which is about 25 miles from here. A couple of the teachers from Karen's school attend there. We were told that it is a growing church so we wanted to check it out.
It was very contemporary with its praise music--a style that we enjoyed. The people seemed genuinely friendly--one lady sitting by us introduced herself, then went and got us a gift as visitors (a wrapped loaf of pumpkin bread). The pastor was a young 'cowboy' preacher with boots and all--in fact, in the church entry was a special rack for the men to put their cowboy hats on. I guess a lot of the ranchers attend this church. The pastor spoke on the resurrection of Lazarus. Overall, it was a very good experience. We would probably want to go back but it is so far away--50 mile round trip.
The only thing is--it made us wonder whether we would be able to find such a healthy church to serve at. Such a growing church usually doesn't need a new pastor, or may be too large for what my experience would offer. Still, we don't want to limit God and what He is able to do. So we keep praying that God would lead us to just the right place--a body that wants to grow--and is willing to change, if necessary, to accomplish that growth.
Rick Warren in his Purpose Driven Church book says that a healthy church is a growing church. The church in Ordway is probably one of the healthiest churches that we have visited and it is in a community that is not growing--yet it has grown. It was also great to see all generations in attendance, babies through 90 years.
Meanwhile, we are still waiting to see where God will lead us!

Back

I can't say that I've been particularly busy this week, but I have been neglecting my blog. I have been subbing several days this week--3 1/2 days. I have started to do some research for my next school paper, also.
Things are just going slow around here. I have been sending out resumes, with a couple of replys back saying "thanks for your resume, but not what we are looking for." I have expanded the search beyond where family lives--but we are still praying for something close to family. It's interesting that most of the churches posted are in the mid-west or north east. Very few in the west.
So, we are praying that God will provide some more income for us for the next few months. It would be wonderful if I could find a temporary full-time job. Thanks for your continued prayers for us!

How to share the gospel with Muslims

I wrote recently about a survey of why Muslims come to Christ--it is, for many, because of the lifestyle of Christians. And my Dad shared with me about a book on the same subject. And then, Karen and I read from our devotional book "Voices of the Faithful" complied by Beth Moore which has testimonies from missionaries all over the world. In yesterday's devotional: A missionary led a team of volunteers from Texas into remote Muslim villages in South Asia. In one village, the team shared the gospel. The local iman (Muslim pastor) became irate and forced the Christians to leave his village.
A Muslim background believer (MBB) working with the missionary visited the same village six months later. The village was totally underwater. This is the only flood that the village had ever seen in its history. The missionary worked out a plan with the MBB to distribute food in the village.
During the relief effort, six Muslim men approached the MBB. These men had heard the gospel presented by the Americans the year before and witnessed the team being escorted out of the village. They asked who supplied the food. The MBB told them that it was from the same Americans who had been thrown out of the village. One man said, "Why are these Christians giving us food when our people treated them badly?"
That day, and on several subsequent trips to the village, the national believer shared that God could also change their hearts. Within nine months of the Americans' visit, 28 Muslims from the village were baptized and a church was started!

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas"

Yes, that's right--I was surprised to find out today that Christmas is almost here! Let me explain. Although Wal-Mart is not one of our favorite places to shop, we needed to go there today to get some necessary items, one of those necessities being pellets for our pellet stove. But that's another subject. Anyway when we walked in, it was very apparent that the Halloween items were moved to the clearance area and Christmas was taking over! They even had Christmas music playing. Aisles were filled with Christmas (or should I say "Holiday") candy, gift suggestions, decorations, etc.
I was struck again by the fact that Christmas has become the way that stores are able to stay in business the rest of the year. I hope that we all don't get caught up in the spending frenzy! Even before we were down to one income, we had planned to keep Christmas gifts simple this year.
Thank you, Wal-Mart for jolting me with the reminder that Christmas is less than two months away!
What are your thoughts about this marketing of Christmas?

Hangin' in there!

When people ask how I'm doing, one of my responses is "Oh, I'm hangin' in there." And sometimes it feels like I have a better grip on things than at other times. It's amazing how easily Satan can get us defeated when things are not going well. During these times we have to keep recalling God's faithfulness and goodness. I like to read the Psalms at times like these because they are constant reminders that we need to remember His mercy and kindness to us.

What's your favorite passage to read during tough times?

How is your church doing on outreach?

Churches and change

I have come to realize that if I were to go to another small church there might be some changes that I may want to make. I have always heeded the advice that I learned a long time ago to "take it slowly." I thought I had done that at La Junta, but still there was resistance to even, what I considered, minor changes. So I learn from my mistakes and trust that God will continue to use me wherever He may lead. However, I did come across a great article on making changes in church without "getting people steamed." Here is a quote from the beginning: An old farmer once said, "Go slow. Churches are a lot like horses. They don't like to be startled or surprised. It causes deviant behavior."
The fiercest battles are seldom fought over theology. More often, they are fought over change, sometimes even the slightest change.
Check out the rest of the article at http://lists.christianitytoday.com/t/8977380/1790648/139647/0/

Answered Prayer

Karen and I have been in much prayer this past week concerning the Ft. Bragg church. We realized that it would be very difficult to have me in CA and Karen in La Junta. The winter can get quite harsh here and Karen would have to deal with it by herself. So the Lord answered our prayers with the Ft. Bragg church realizing the same thing. Bill Yeomans e-mailed us this morning--part of the e-mail stated "It was an almost unanimous decision that we feel it would be a disservice to you, to ask you to give up so much to come here, when we have such a limited congregation and as you clearly stated, "an uphill climb" to develop a viable ministry."

So we are still waiting for God's leading regarding another ministry.

If you would like to get insight into a search committee's search for a pastor, this is an interesting web page to visit. It details their process. Their initial search began in July and they have just recently re-posted the position to start the search process again: http://www.hillmongrove.org/Pastor%20Search%20information2.pdf You can see why it takes a long time to hear back from a church!

Visiting

We visited a small church in Las Animas which is about 20 miles east of us. We met the pastor, David Barber and his wife, this past summer. They are the closest CBA church to us. I also was with them at the Pastor's Retreat I attended last month.
The church had about 45 adults in attendance. It was a very simple service, with an old-fashioned traditional feel to it, although they did sing some older praise choruses along with hymns. When I read the profiles of churches who are looking for pastors, I think that the majority of them are like this church. And I wonder how we would feel about being in a church like the La Junta church again.
I think that the more progressive churches are going to be larger or in larger cities. Or younger than 25 years old. Are there older churches which are meeting the needs of the younger generation? Or is it only the mega-churches that are doing so?

I have been subbing this week at two different small school districts. They are the only ones who will let me sub without the paperwork back from the state. Apparently, they need subs more than the two larger districts. Then again, Karen's school district is small also, but they won't let me sub yet, either. I feel a lot like Frank and Earnest, so we are just thankful for the little extra money for next month.

Lifestyle of Christians

I have written before about the fact that it is not only the preaching of the Word of God that will win people to Jesus Christ but also it is living out the Word of God. I came across an article in the latest Christianity Today magazine that I found very interesting. Quite often we hear of people saying that it is looking at the life of Christians that keeps them from coming to Christ for themselves. Many people will say, "If that's what a Christian is, I don't want to be one."

However, the CT article referrs to a study done by the mission folks at Fuller Seminary. In this study, they look at the experiences that most influenced Muslims to convert to Christianity. The respondents ranked the lifestyle of Christians as the most important influnence in their decision to follow Christ. Most of those who responded were not Americans, but citizens in countries and areas such as North Africa, Egypt, Oman, Arabia, etc. What a lesson we American Christians can learn from our Christian brothers and sisters in the midst of Islam! As the saying goes, our life may be the only Bible some people will ever read.

How much change is too much?

Next?

After the discouraging yet insightful weekend in Fort Bragg, I have to decide what is next for us. I am still in prayer about the church there in Ft. Bragg--they do have some finances but not enough without me working too. But is it worth it to leave Karen in Colorado while I am out there? And then again, every soul won and discipled for Christ is worth it. At this point it would seem that it will not work out for me to go but we will see.
That means waiting here in La Junta for another opportunity to open up--but that typically can take 2 to 3 months of working with a church before they will select their pastor. For example, I just heard back from a church that I sent my resume to today--they e-mailed back and said that they would 'narrow the field' down in late November. However, I am so glad that I serve a faithful God who I know cares about me. And He will lead me to His best place of ministry. So until then, please keep the prayers going up up up!

Sunday Summary

We had a very interesting morning at the church--Cornerstone Christian Fellowship. It meets in the 7th Day Adventist Church. And there were only 8 other people there, with us making 10. Bill told us that a couple of people/couples were out of town. But I think that the church is down to about 12-15 people on a Sunday with one couple bringing 5 to 7 mentally handicapped children with them. (They left the children home today so that Bill's wife who usually does a class with them could stay to listen to the message.) I think Bill has been a little too optomistic with us about the church--He himself says that he sees the 'glass as half-full' while his wife sees it as half-empty. But tonight at dinner he was a bit more honest with us about the situation (which we had pretty much determined after this morning). Basicallly, the church needs to be rebuilt since they have lost several of their original members. He said that the core group was pretty tired and wearing down--they need a 'general' to give the 'army' some direction and encouragement. Am I that 'general'? I'm not sure yet.
The church will decide next Sunday about whether to call me as their pastor or not. At this point I am not sure about what my decision will be if they chose to call me.
Please pray that God will give me clear direction about coming to help them rebuild.

In Fort Bragg

We are tired! We left Colorado Springs at 6:15am (arriving at the airport at 5:15am) and pulled into our hotel at about 3:15pm (California time of course). We hit quite a bit of rain driving from I-5 to Hiway 1, but then it cleared up tonight.
We had dinner with Bill Yeomans from the church tonight, and then we will get together with him and his wife tomorrow afternoon/evening. Tomorrow during the day we plan on during some sightseeing and perhaps take in the Huckleberries and Hounds Festival in town. And of course a walk on the beach!

On the way driving we listened to a CD of funny stories from Chuck Swindoll from his sermons. He made the point that if more Christians showed more joy in their life perhaps they would have a better testimony in their world! Karen suggested that I use at least one funny story in every sermon to help give our Christians joy. If you have any good humorous sermon illustrations, please feel free to share them. :)
Let's all try to spread some humor and joy around to others!

Preaching the Word

Joylene had a link to another blog on her site Therapy. http://swerve.lifechurch.tv/ It was dealing with the future of the church --which I am greatly interested in since I am seeking to pastor a "future church." Anyway, the following comment caught my attention:

The churches that thrive will be Biblical churches. God’s Word will be preached. People will feel uncomfortable, challenged, convicted. The future church will be more about preaching and living God’s Word than about attracting people with clever sermon titles, videos, and programs. Sure, we might use those things (or maybe not… GASP!). But only those who preach God’s Word will thrive. The rest will die.

We have had a few people share with us that they think some of the people left our church in La Junta because they felt "uncomfortable, challenged, convicted." The Word of God was being preached, yet some of the older members were leaving, and we were getting new people coming in their place. Unfortunately, the rest of the older members didn't catch on to what was really happening. Why didn't our church thrive if we were preaching the Word?
But there is more to building a church then just preaching the Word of God. It is a big part of course, but building relationships with those who come is very important as well. When I went to a small church in No California several years ago, I thought, "Preach the Word, and they will come." But "they" didn't come because they didn't have any relationships with those who were coming already. The challenge for the established churches then, is to not only "to preach the Word" but also to make connections with others so that they will come to hear the Word preached. And the above article also mentions a key to getting people to come: "and living God's Word." Part of why those people are not making the connections is because many of them are not "living the Word." Those around them don't see the truth of the Word being lived out in the believers they know.
I think it is easier to get a new church moving this direction than it is to get an older established church to move. Every time I look at a position posting for a church seeking a minister and see that it is over 100 years old, I wonder how those people are doing in getting new people to come to hear the Word preached.

What do we do to get people to come and hear the Word that we know will change their lives?

A Pastor's Daydream

Joy in Christians

I have been thinking about what to preach on when I go to Fort Bragg next Sunday. Karen suggested something on joy, like from a sermon series I did on Philippians 4--"How to have joy".
It is interesting that I came across this article from Preaching Today about the joy that Christians have. I will give you a few excerpts:
...our preacher shared an interaction he'd had with a supermarket clerk. As she checked each of his items, she stopped to look him in the eye and say, "We always know when your church lets out on a Sunday—saddest, meanest group we deal with all week long." I look back on the state of our church and wonder how our attitudes were affecting the children of the congregation. The Sunday School teacher probably stood before the class each week, singing, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands," only to be met by a dreadful stretch of silence. But who could blame the kids for not even flinching at the invitation? Their little, peering eyes had been on a downcast mom and dad all week! We held fast in our hearts to the Good News, but joy—even that wonderful state of happiness that joy often brings about—seemed just beyond us. At the beginning of "A Christian's Happiness," Timothy Keller confesses that even as a Christ follower, he often struggles with issues of joy and a more consistent state of happiness. So it pleases him to no end that Paul's words in Romans 8:28–30 show a pathway toward a more impervious, relentless joy.

And then a sermon illustration that I might use in my message:
America Is World's Saddest Nation
According to a recent study by the World Health Organization and Harvard Medical School, America may very well be the saddest nation in the world. Researchers found that 9.6 percent of Americans suffer from depression or bipolar disorder—the highest among 14 major nations polled. Those nations that scored better than the U.S. suffer from ongoing wars and rumors of war (Lebanon), vast unemployment (Mexico), and profound poverty (Nigeria). In his Wall Street Journal article, "The Great Depression," Bret Stephens argues that perhaps America scores poorly as a nation because its population is generally comfortable and wealthy. Such luxuries allow more time for critically picking apart life situations and personal circumstances. Those who live in countries torn apart by varying social and economic issues have less time to fret over personal gain and ambition. They are simply too busy trying to survive. So what could turn our sad nation around? The research shows that the citizens of the world's happier nations find a steady source of joy in their families, their religion, and their traditions. —Brian Lowery, associate editor, PreachingToday.com; source: Bret Stephens, "The Great Depression," The Wall Street Journal (3-9-07)

How is YOUR joy?

Going to Church

After I typed the title of this post, I remembered a quote that I heard on the radio this past week when I was traveling. It was something like this, "Too often people just think of 'going to church' instead of 'being the church.'" Anyway, I was going to write about 'going to church' this morning--I think you know what I mean by that. We went to the Mennonite church around the corner from us as they had asked me to speak. As we sat in the adult Sunday School class of about 10 people (with everyone older than us), I was again reminded of the state of mature Christians in the church. I wondered how long the older people had been Christians and reflected on the questions and answers during the discussion. There seemed to be a lack of spiritual insight in the discussion considering the age of the participants.

I had thought previously that it might be nice if a church in the area asked me to be their pastor so that we wouldn't have to move. But after being with this church today, I am excited about the possibility of going to a church that is only a year old. Many established churches, like this particular one, are just too "old fashioned" for me, I guess. I hope that the people of the Fort Bragg church are willing to be a bit more contemporary. We will see....

Seeking His Will

It is often difficult to know God's will for your life. There are many verses in Scripture that give us instruction regarding His will, I know. For example, it is God's will that we not sin. It is His will that we tell others about His great love. It is His will that we love others.
And then there are those areas about daily living that we wonder about His will which He hasn't specifically revealed in Scripture. Is it God's will that I should go to college? What college should I go to? What is His will regarding marriage? Should I marry? To whom?
And of course, there is the question of serving Him. Should I be a pastor, a missionary, a teacher? These are all questions that I have wrestled with. And right now, is it His will that I should continue to serve Him as a pastor, and where?
I bring this all up because of the opportunity to go to Fort Bragg, CA, to serve Him. We want to know God's will. We have been in communication with a leader from the Fort Bragg church (I didn't even catch the name of it, only that it is a So Baptist church). Bill Yeomans is the father and father-in-law of one of the young couples who were members of our church in La Junta. He has asked us to consider coming to be their pastor. So we are flying out there next weekend, Oct. 19-22 to meet them, interview, speak, and to determine if this would be God's will for us.
We appreciate your prayers for us--going there would mean a sacrifice in many areas, especially financial, and perhaps of being separated for a while until our house sells. God seems to be closing all other doors at this time; yet we want to be in His perfect will and move in His time.
By the way, I was asked to speak at the Mennonite church in our community that is without a permanent pastor. I will be speaking there tomorrow. Thank you again for your prayers for us.

Back Home

Wow, what a drive from La Junta to Dalton, Georgia, and back! But it was great to visit with Jeff and Joylene and see what their life is like. It is also great to be back home with Karen and our life here. (I even killed a wolf spider for her within an hour of being back!) We are still praying that God would open up a church near Joylene and Jeff or other family. We miss them!

Last week I had a link to the Christianity Today site about maturity in Christians. They took a little on-line poll about the maturity of believers today. Very interesting results! How would you answer the question?

Results of Last Week's Poll
Big Babies: Compared to what we know about believers a generation ago, how would you assess the maturity of most of today's Christians?
Less mature; so many spiritual babies: 74%
About the same level of maturity: 12%
I'm not sure: 10%
More mature; so many strong believers today: 5%

Relaxin'

Not much new to add lately. I have just been spending time with Joyelene and Jeff and kind of relaxing and hanging out with them. I have seen a few sights around the area such as a civil war battlefield (Chickamuga) and the 1820's Cherokee council site.

We are still praying about whether God would lead us to go to Fort Bragg to the small church that has contacted me. It is a situation where a church plant of a year ago lost their pastor and are asking me if I would consider coming. In light of that, I spent some time with Jeff talking about what he has learned about church planting. (Although his ministry is not a 'church', he has studied a lot about the subject.)

One key area is to get the core leaders to have a vision. I think this applies to any church, large or small, new or ancient--the leaders need to have a vision of where and what they want the church to be. And the pastor is one key element to helping the church form that vision.

As I said, we are still praying about the Fort Bragg position and seeing if God will open or close other doors while we are waiting. Thanks for your prayers for us!

Not to Turlock

I heard from the Turlock church yesterday--they have decided to pursue another individual for their pastor. God has closed the door there, and now we are waiting on Him to show us where He would have us serve Him. We know God is in control, but we also want to know the 'where' and the 'when' of His control. We are still praying that we would be able to move closer to family.
Please pray for our house to sell at just the right time and for our car to sell so that we wouldn't have that financial burden.

Georgia on my mind

Yes, I've felt this way lately!

But now I am in Georgia after 2 long days of driving. Boy, is Kansas a long state to drive through! I made it to Columbia, MO, on Monday, and then on in to Dalton, GA, on Tuesday. I arrived in time to have a great fried-chicken dinner with Joylene, Jeff, and Karen (Jeff's mom) before heading out to ONE, the ministry that Jeff heads up.

It was great to see 60 young adults worshipping in their way--with a live band playing quite loud, even for this Baby Boomer. While I prefer to worship in a softer, yet comtemporary style, it was interesting to see how these 20-somethings were really "into" the worship. Some of the praise songs were the same as we have done at our church, but the delivery was a lot "bolder"! Our generations have become quite distinct in their worship styles, which makes a "blended" service harder to accept for the generations at each end of the age span. I understand why some churches choose to have separate services for each generation although I feel it tends to lead to less community in the whole body. Do you think it is better to have a worship style for each generation separately, or to have a blended service in which many may have to compromise in their favorite way to worship?

Jeff did a great job of communicating his message. He told me afterwards that he never had any preaching classes in seminary (since he was a theology major), and he felt that was probably to his advantage in how he communicates in this particular setting. I agree.

What a challenge to get this generation to really grow in their walk with Jesus without "doing church" which many of them have rejected!

Here is an interesting article that I read about the lack of "mature" Christians in the church: http://www.christianitytoday.com/leaders/newsletter/2007/cln71001.html

Traveling to Georgia

I have been having some stress this past week and weekend--the kind where my body feels like it is tightening up and I can't relax. After hearing me complain about not feeling good with this stress, Karen suggested that I get out of La Junta for a while, because I seemed to feel better when I was in Pueblo or Colorado Springs. So Karen suggested that I take a road trip to visit Jeff and Joylene in Georgia.
After thinking about it for a couple of days, and talking it over with Karen and Joylene, I have decided to hit the road. I will leave tomorrow, Monday, and try to make it to Dalton by Tuesday evening when they have their ministry "ONE" for the 20-somethings of North Georgia.
I am considering this as a 'retreat' of sorts--time to listen to Christian music and preachers in the car and time to relax and let Joylene and Jeff take care of my every need (Hey, it's payback time!).
I will let you know how the trip is going as I will take my laptop with me. Pray that it will be a time of reflection and renewal for me--and that I stay awake for the 20 hour drive!

Who's in charge at your house?

This is the way it is at our house. How about yours?

Teaching

Today I picked up applications for substitute teaching from several school districts in the area. People have assured me that I could work about every day if I want because subs are greatly needed. But it will take a while to get the certification licence from the state, so it will be a time of waiting again.
At my Wednesday morning Bible study today, I shared that we have enough income to cover most of the month of October. One of the guys then said, Well, I guess God will start answering your prayers in November! It is when we are truly dependent on Him that we see Him most at work. But it would be nice to not have to wait until November!

Time to downsize more!

On the way home from helping Karen's parents load their U-Haul for their move to California, we realized that we still have way too much stuff. We don't want to have to move all the stuff that we now possess. Why is it that we humans are like pack rats--we hold on to too much stuff and always want more. We started naming all the items that we would like to get rid of before we move--oak roll-top computer desk that weighs a ton, a futon we never use, an extra freezer we don't need now that we aren't raising beef, etc., etc. I guess we will have a moving sale when the time draws nearer. How much extra stuff do you have that you really don't use or need?

We did get Karen's folks packed up and on their way to CA. Karen's brothers and Dad did some errands on Monday morning so we didn't get started packing the truck until after 11:00am (Karen and I were a little frustrated waiting around for them to get back with the truck). But we had the 26' truck loaded, with a little room to spare, by 3:00pm. After gathering up the last few odds and ends we left their house about 3:30pm with Karen's brothers driving the U-Haul pulling the extra car, and her folks following in their pick-up with 2 dogs.

Speaking of dogs, we started to think about our dogs if we have to fly somewhere to interview. Anyone know of a good dog-sitter?

Moving Karen's Parents

We are heading out to Del Norte to help Karen's parents with their move back to California. We will be back on Monday evening, Lord willing. Until then I won't be sharing any news about our situation--Check back on Tuesday. Until then I wanted to share with you the lyrics to a song that has taken on special meaning for me at this time in my life. I have heard it recently on the radio, sang it last week at the pastor's retreat and sang it again today at a pastor's brunch I went to. I think the Lord is trying to get the message through to me--and it's working because I get emotional each time I sing it! Hope you enjoy it too.


Blessed Be Your Name
by Matt Redman
album: Where Angels Fear To Tread (2002)

- - -
Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name
Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be Your name

When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

Waiting

Yes, waiting is hard to do. We are waiting on our motorhome to sell, waiting for our house to sell, waiting for our car to sell, waiting to hear from churches, and waiting to see our God will supply our needs.

The realtor showed our house today--so I had to quickly get the house in shape. That helped to motivate me, since I had to have it clean before we leave for Del Norte to help Karen's parents move--we are going out there tomorrow evening after Karen gets off work. And tomorrow I will be gone for a good portion of the day. A Colorado Springs Christian radio station is having a brunch for pastors and a fellow pastor invited me to go with him. He asked me, "What are you doing on Thursday?" Well, right now just a whole lot of waiting, so I was glad for the invite. It's also interesting that this fellow pastor had previously served at First Baptist Church and was fired after about 2 1/2 years there (about 10 years ago)--and he told me the problems are still the same as when he was there. Now you tell me!

Closed doors, open doors

I just received a phone call from the father of one of our good friends from church. He is involved with a church plant in Fort Bragg, CA http://www.fortbragg.com. Their pastor just resigned after a year and so they are looking for a pastor and wanted to know if I would be interested.
That would be in California but still a long way from family! And the financial situation would be a challenge. But if God would want us there, He will provide! God closed the door to SoCal for right now and perhaps He is opening the door to NorCal. But this is a matter for lots of fervent prayer (not that we haven't been doing that already!).
Karen and I were just talking on Sunday about the fact that if we went to a small, struggling church we would need to approach it and work it as a new church plant, to give the church a fresh start--and so, Karen's thought was that I should do some research this week about church planting ministry. Is God leading us that way?

Never too soon

Where?

Last month I sent my resume and a placement form to the CBA office of So Cal. At that time, the director told me that there were two churches looking for pastors--in La Mesa, where I grew up, and in Perris, near my folks and my sister and her husband. We have been praying fervently that God would move us near family. I decided to call both those churches today to see where they were in the search process. The La Mesa church told me they were no longer seeking a pastor, (I guess they already selected one), and the Perris church secretary told me that they are voting on a candidate this next Sunday. So I guess God has closed the doors on those ministries.
We, especially Karen, are still praying about a church in Tennesee that would be near Joylene and Jeff. And then there is the church in Turlock that would be near Karen's family in Lodi. I know why there are so many scripture passages about "waiting patiently"! We need to be reminded that God's timing is so different than ours.

Critters movin' in

Karen once again is looking forward to being able to move out of this house---I killed about 6 wolf spiders last night. And I caught a mouse in the mouse trap. We had been in bed for awhile, and almost asleep when we heard a noise in the kitchen. Karen told me to sneak into the kitchen to find out where the mouse was--I thought it was rattling things in the drawers. It turned out that it was struggling in the mousetrap. We have been finding droppings in the drawers, so hopefully this is the one that had been in them.
Last week, Baby (our little Maltese) caught 4 baby mice. And Scooby will catch the wolf spiders if we let him.

On a different note, yesterday was my final Sunday at church. The message went well--I showed a video that tied in with my sermon (I am attaching it here). It was a "man-on-the-street" asking individuals what they thought their purpose in life is--Amazing to hear so many people without any purpose! It just emphasized one of the points of my message--that we need to have a passion for reaching people for Jesus Christ! Watch the video and tell me your thoughts.

Sunday school class farewell

This afternoon our Sunday school class from the church had a get together for us at the Skipps house. We had a good time of fellowship and eating. It's interesting that it was a party for us, but I was the one that ended up Bar-B-Qing all the meat (since we took the grill over there). Hey, I like doing it anyway!
We had a good time sharing about the highlights of our time here. Some remembered the personal times at their homes like 4th of July, and others remembered the programs that were successful like Cafe Junction. It was good to have that encouraging feedback. It is so easy to focus on the negative--so I am thankful for the time we had today.
Another postitive--one lady gave us a card and a gift of $100. What a blessing to see how God is taking care of our needs. Earlier this week, I received a gift of $950. One of the young men in my Wed. morning Bible study vowed to give me the fee for his EMT class if he ended up receiving a scholarship--He did and he kept his vow. Praise the Lord! God is faithful! We are looking forward to seeing how else He provides.

Moving out of office

This afternoon Karen came in and helped me pack up my office. Now I have a pickup full of books that I need to store somewhere! I guess our garage is going to be the storage spot. I also spent time today trying to find tapes of messages that I could send to churches. Last month Karen and I picked out one message to send, but I wanted to find one or two other good ones to send. Two that we picked out are from my series on Philippians--that is my favorite book to preach on. It seems to really relate to all of us and has lots of practical application. I tried to find another message from Romans or Matthew. But whenever I picked out a message and played it, there was a problem with it--like the mic didn't work right or no sound at all or other technical problems or it just wasn't one of my best ones. Karen said, I guess God wants you to just send the two we picked out already. How much control does God have over things like that, I wonder?
Relating to that, as I was studying for this Sunday's sermon, I came across a statement in one of the commentaries. I'm not sure I will remember it exactly right, but it was discussing Paul's plans in Romans 15 and him asking for prayer. The statement basically said, there is a biblical tension between God's predetermined plan of events for us and situation-changing power of prayer. How much do our prayers determine (or change) God's plan for us?

Back home

Yes, I'm back home from the retreat--it really was a retreat in the sense that I was able to retreat from some of my stress. Each session dealt with servant leadership and reminding us that with serving the Lord comes hard times. But God is faithful!
The men and women at the retreat were very supportive of me in my situation. Several just put their arms around me and said, "I've been there. I know it hurts."
One missionary even wanted me to go to India and the Middle East with him next month to help with a pastor's conference!
I may write more thoughts about the retreat later--now, it's time to get ready for my last sermon--"Paul, a Man on the Move" (Romans 15-16). That title is the title of the section on this passage in Warren Wiersbe's commentary on Romans. I thought it would be appropriate for my last sermon, before this Paul moves on!

At the Retreat

Just a quick thought about the pastor's retreat I am at. Dr. Mark Bailey, President of Dallas Seminary, is the speaker. Tonight he was speaking just to me--ever feel that way? Anyway, he was talking about the life of Joseph and all he went through. When it came down to the end, he knew it was God who led him to Egypt--for the purpose of saving his family. His brothers didn't send him to Egypt--God did. And so I was reminded that it is not the church of La Junta that is causing me to move on--it is God! What purpose does He have for doing this? We don't know yet--but we can definitely see God's hand in it all!

Moving away from Spiders

Karen said the other day that she would be glad to move away from all the "wolf" spiders. They are fairly big, about 1 inch leg span, and a little hairy. Last night I killed 3 in the bathroom--how they are getting in, I don't know. But Karen hates spiders and will be glad not to deal with these particular types!

Today was church with a business meeting afterwards--only 14 people showed up for the meeting. There was a big discussion about the church having the "Fresh Start" ministry come to do a total church evaluation. The board had made the recommendation to have them come but some people felt that they could solve the problems without spending the big bucks (around $7000.00). The church decided to have a meeting in a couple of weeks to discuss the issue more. It was another case of the church people not wanting to follow the direction of the board. It will be interesting to hear how it all turns out!

I will be going on a pastor's retreat from Monday pm till Wednesday noon. The church board had approved it a couple of months ago, especially since it wasn't costing them anything--the Rocky Mountain CBA Executive Director gave me a 'scholarship' since I was a 'first year pastor' with CBA. I asked him a couple of weeks ago if I could still come even though as of next week I won't be at a CBA church anymore. I hope to get some good fellowship and inspiration to help with my next ministry. Karen is not looking forward to being by herself the next couple of days--she will have to kill the spiders herself! Keep us in your prayers (especially Karen!).

Ready to pack

Karen brought home a lot of boxes from school so that I can get started on packing up my office. (Thank goodness for a new reading curriculum for the school!) I guess I will work on that at the end of next week. No other news from churches--so it is waiting time. I have read a couple of psalms and devotionals this week about "waiting." I think God is trying to tell us something.

We are getting our 07 Chevy Trailblazer ready to sell so that we can get rid of that payment--actually we had seriously thought about selling it a couple of months ago when we read Dave Ramsey's book The Total Money Makeover. http://www.DaveRamsey.com Anyone want to buy a nice car???

Farewell Sunday

At our church Executive Board meeting last night, they asked us if we would be open to having a farewell get-together on Sunday the 16th, which is my last Sunday at the church. They wanted to have it in the afternoon at 3 pm so those who know me from other churches could come. I did announce it at the Ministerial Assoc. meeting today and I think some of my fellow ministers from town may come. It will be interesting to see who from the church will make the extra effort to come???

I had a lot of stress from last night's meeting. I gave them a summary report of my time as their pastor--but I also included answers to, and suggestions for, some of the issues that had been brought up about my ministry. I don't know why it gave me such physical stress, but it did. I have been trying to walk a mile a day on the treadmill to help with the stress. What do you do when your mind and heart say things are going to be okay because God is in control, but your body just does not get the message?

Support from others

On Wednesday mornings I have been going to a community men's Bible study--It's good to get support from other Christians at times like this. It was my turn to lead the study today, and I chose Psalm 46 to discuss. We need to be reminded of God's power and protection in our lives when we have fears about the situations we are in. "Be still, and know that I am God." How has that helped any of you?

I also shared with the men the little saying about hot heads and cool hearts that I was thinking about putting up on the sign--they didn't think that would be a gracious way to leave!

Not to Arkansas

I have sent resumes to several churches and have been waiting to see where the Lord might lead. One church that I was very interested in was in Hope, Arkansas (yep, the hometown of Bill Clinton!). This church has a passion for the teaching of God's Word and reaching their community for Christ. But I received word from them today that their church was not what the Lord had for me. We are thanking God for this answer about future ministry. Although it was closer to Joylene and Jeff in Georgia, it was not really that close to family which is what we are asking God for.

Reflecting on our present church situation, some older people had told others that they were going to leave the church if I didn't resign--I came across this humorous illustration that I thought about using in my sermon on Sunday, but didn't:
"A wise old pastor told how some people get mad at the church and decide they will hurt the church by leaving. He explained that they were wrong in thinking that their leaving would hurt the church. The tree is never hurt when an old dried-up apple falls to the ground."

And here is a saying I thought about putting on the church sign out front: "Hot heads and cool hearts equal an empty church."
Got any more good sayings?

Helping others move on

What a busy last few days! On Wednesday and Thursday I was busy at the office trying to get things ready for Sunday (today). It is very stressful having to prepare the right message for the church when I know I am leaving it soon. It is so amazing that we started our series in the book of Romans last year, and just now we are in the 14th chapter dealing with what to do when Christians disagree. Most everyone has really appreciated the messages and has commented that they feel like this is something the church has needed for a long time--But God's timing is perfect, and this Sunday was the right Sunday to give this message.

On Thursday night we headed out to Del Norte (Eastern Colorado) to help Karen's parents get ready to move on. (Before I left on Thursday to pick up Karen, I had to make sure the house was ready to show by realtors!) Karen's folks are moving back to California to live by her brothers. Her dad had been working on building a house with her brother Craig before he died. Now they are selling the unfinished house--On Friday, we helped move some building supplies from their rental house into the unfinished house. And we will go back on Sept. 23 to help pack up their stuff and load it into the U-Haul truck--Karen's brothers are flying out to help load and drive the trucks. So Karen's folks are movin' on, too. When our turn will be, we don't know yet.

Encouraging words

I had a couple of people drop by my office today to offer encouraging words. And I had a couple of phone calls yesterday and today with words of encouragement. God's blessings are always there!

One of the people to talk to me today was a lady who began coming to our church because she would bring her mother who lived with her. "Sally" had been baptized as a child in a Baptist church but didn't really get involved. However, coming with her mother to our church got her interested in spiritual things again. Sally decided that she wanted to be more involved and joined our church a couple of years ago. Not long afterward, her elderly mother died, but Sally has gotten even more involved. She was soooo disappointed to hear about the problems at the church--she had no idea that others were so dissatisfied. She told me today that because of this she doesn't even want to come anymore and doesn't want to go to church anywhere because of how Christians treat one another. What do you say to help someone who has been so disappointed in the actions of others in the church? So disappointed that they don't want to have anything to do with the local church again?

Sally also told me that she thought it was the best for us to be "movin' on"--she has had a hard time living with the people of our town since her husband was transferred here 9 years ago.

A Few more Sundays

Interestingly enough, in our studies in Romans we came to chapter 14 on Sunday (yesterday). I titled my message, "What do we do when Christians disagree?" The issues that caused the disagreements in Paul's day are different than what cause disagreements today--not too many of us in the U.S. worry about eating meat sacrificed to idols--but the principles for handling those disagreements still apply today.

Several people commented to me that it was a great sermon and too bad others weren't there to hear it--yes, too bad, but God had His plan on my teaching on that passage yesterday and for those who were there.

Several people also commented on how sad they were that we were "movin' on." The next few weeks will be tough--my last Sunday is Sept. 16

Movin' On

Well, I am joining the Twenty-First Century--I am starting a blog. I remember a pastor a few years ago encouraging other pastors to create a blog to share their thoughts and interactions with others. So here I go!

Why "Movin' On' for the title of my blog? Because I have served as pastor of First Baptist Church, La Junta, CO, for the last 3 1/2 years, and now God is moving us on to bigger and better things! I resigned this past Monday night (I know, Pastor's aren't supposed to resign on Mondays) after a very stressful past few weeks. It was evident that things weren't going to turn around in the church, and so I felt led to 'move on.'

I thought I would write about this transition time in our lives--I am married to a wonderful supportive wife, Karen--we have been married for over 33 years--and she has always stuck with me through all the other "movin' on" times in our lives.

That's it for now.
Paul Gleason